A mum and her two young daughters had a lucky escape after their house caught on fire in Armagh on Sunday evening.
Fire crews rushed to the blaze in the Ardmore Hill area shortly after 6pm.
It took them two hours to deal with the fire which completely gutted the upstairs of the property. Fortunately the two children were in the back garden at the time.
A NIFRS spokesperson said: “One fire appliance from Armagh fire station and one fire appliance from Keady Fire Station attended the incident.
“Our firefighters were called to a fire at a residential property yesterday evening. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus, used two hose reels to extinguish the fire.
“The incident was dealt with by 8.35pm and the cause of the fire is under investigation.”
Police said the investigation is being led by the fire service.
The mum told Armagh I “the whole upstairs is destroyed – we have lost everything”.
Despite the loss of material belongings, she added: “Me and the kids are okay – we’re just lucky to be here; materials can be replaced whereas our lives could not have been.
“It’s absolutely devastating but we are together and that is all that matters.”
Posting on social media on Sunday night, she also thanked “everybody in Ardmore for being there for me and my girls today” and also thanked “the fire brigade – them men and women don’t get enough credit for their job”.
